Daisy Hill and Atherton LR suffer defeat in openers - Non-league round-up

Check our our latest non-league round-up below.

LR PAY FOR SLOW START

LR's huddle ahead of the start of their new season. Picture: James Lobley

Mark Robinson was at a loss to explain how Atherton LR’s first 45 minutes of the season fell so flat against Golcar United.

Hopes were high at Crilly Park after a goal-laden spell of friendlies, but Rovers found themselves 2-0 down at the interval, Ben Burnett and Lee Bradshaw netting for the visitors from Huddersfield.

The lead was extended after the break when Matty Stor pounced on the rebound after Bradshaw’s penalty was saved by Joel Torrance.

Mark Battersby, Jamie Forbes and Connor Comber all went close to getting Robinson’s side back into the game but it proved too little, too late.

“That’s what you get when you don’t do the things we’d done right in pre-season,” complained the manager after the final whistle.

“I thought we were a bit slow to start and looked like a team that hadn’t had a properly competitive game. I know we’d played some decent teams in friendlies, North West Counties teams, and beat them. But it’s a different mindset and maybe Golcar’s first couple of games that they got out of their system gave them a little edge.

“But there’s no excuses, we were poor.”

Rovers have a chance to get back on track tonight against Garstang, the game at Crilly Park kicking-off at 7.45pm.

“We have to get it out of our system,” boss Robinson said. “I hope they look at the information we sent out to them and realise they got it wrong.

“Everyone has strengthened over the summer and that means there are no easy games.

“Garstang will be another tough test but if we do the right things we’ll be a test for a lot of teams. If we don’t, we play into the opposition’s hands.”

DAISY HIT FOR FIVE IN OPENER

Action from Daisy Hill's meeting with Prestwich Heys. Picture: Haydan Roberts

Daisy Hill manager Brian Hart blamed a poor collective defensive display as the main reason for his side’s 5-2 home defeat at the hands of Prestwich Heys in the opening game of their North West Counties League First Division North season.

Clinical finishing saw Heys build a three-goal lead by half-time, and although Daisy rallied in the second half and got on the scoresheet thanks to Matty Davison and Connor Hughes, the visitors ran out comfortable winners.

The Daisy Hill boss said: “We need to defend better than we did today, otherwise we will be in for a long season.

“I am as surprised as anybody at how poor our defending was, not just the back four, the whole team.

“Prestwich are a good side, but we will face teams like that again this season, and if we defend like we did today we will get punished. 

“Mistakes were made, there was a lack of communication, and we were very slow out of the blocks. The second half was slightly better, but we gave ourselves too much to do.

“I didn’t think Prestwich controlled the game as such, it’s just that they caught us in possession at times, and when they went forward, everything they created, they got on the end of.

“I’m not saying we could have won the game, but I think we could easily have had four or five goals, and they could have had seven or eight if they had been more clinical, it was that type of game.  

“But we were the ones who made more mistakes and didn’t test them often enough, in the first half particularly.

“It’s really disappointing because training has gone well, the players were dying to play and were all wound up ready to get a game in, and it ended up being a damp squib in the end.”

COLLS SET FOR REUNION

Atherton Colls are back in Pitching In Northern Premier League Premier Division action tonight.

Covid concerns at Nantwich Town meant Brad Cooke’s men were without a game on Saturday.

This evening they welcome former boss Michael Clegg and his Ashton United side back to the Skuna Stadium.

Admission is by cash on the turnstile and will cost £8 for adults, £5 for over 65s and students, £3 for 12-17 year olds and free of charge for under 12s.

BORO LOOK TO BOUNCE BACK

Radcliffe are also in action at home to Bamber Bridge, looking to bounce back from Saturday’s 3-0 defeat against Basford United.

Ryan Wilson, Kane Richards and Matt Thornhill, from the penalty spot, gave the away side victory despite Boro creating plenty of chances.

AND HOW ABOUT SOME HIGHLIGHTS?

Courtesy of Up North Productions, check out the best of the action from Stoneclough’s 2-0 win over Croston in Division One of the West Lancashire League on Saturday.

They’ve won four of their opening five games to sit third in the early table.